Repairing or replacing a house window typically involves a long and tedious process of manually removing hardened putty with a putty knife or chisel. A drawback to this approach is that chunks of the window sash are often removed because of human error. Alternatively, hardened putty is commonly removed by applying heat from a source such as a propane torch or a hot-air gun. Unfortunately, applying heat often results in burning the window sash or cracking the glass.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,188,723 shows an apparatus for removing hardened putty. The putty removal apparatus comprises a router-like cutting member including a carbide cutter which is attached by its shaft to the chuck of a high-speed electric drill. An adapter sleeve partially surrounds the cutter and is rotatably supported by the cutting member shaft. A front surface of the adapter sleeve serves as a guide to engage the face of the sash for forwardly positioning the cutter beyond the face of the window sash.
In addition to the adapter sleeve, a guide strip must be tacked to the face of the window to engage the adapter sleeve for locating and steadying the cutting member at or slightly above the putty holding surface of the sash, which extends perpendicular to the glass, thereby adding to the complexity of the putty removal tool and to the preparation time of the putty removal process.
An object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for removing hardened substances which overcomes the above-mentioned drawbacks.